Magnus Forsmark died after a fracas in a New Ross pub and, unlike the four people convicted, got no second chance, writes Brendan Keane
Lars Eric Magnus Forsmark - or Magnus, as he was known to his friends - was a young man from Sweden who visited New Ross, Co Wexford, during the weekend of the J.F.K. Dunbrody Festival in July 2003. The annual event attracts thousands of visitors to the town and that year's festival promised a formidable line-up of acts.
As a street trader, for Magnus Forsmark (30) the festival would be a potential goldmine. He arrived in the town in the company of other traders who, like him, travelled to events all over the country. But when he entered the picturesque town of New Ross on the morning of Saturday, July 19th, 2003, Magnus Forsmark could hardly have known he would be on a life-support machine less than 24 hours later.
The victim of a fracas in one of the town's pubs, Magnus was carried outside the premises in an unconscious state before being taken by ambulance to Wexford General Hospital. He died two days later.
Originally from Hisings Backa in Sweden, Magnus was the son of Paul and Eva Forsmark and had six siblings: Nicklas, Peter, Annika, Annele, Lese-Lott and Helen. Magnus had moved to Ireland two years previously and was living at Pearse Street, Sligo, at the time of his death.
The people of New Ross were shocked by the savage nature of the row in Wickham's pub on Mary Street that led to Magnus's death. While the town, like many others in Ireland, has its share of fighting incidents and after-hours arguments - particularly where drink is concerned - such rows rarely ended in death.
In the close-knit community of Sligo - where Magnus had made many friends - people couldn't understand how this could have happened: "He was very slight and wouldn't harm a fly," said a former workmate in the Sligo Park Hotel. "He was very mannerly and he was also courteous, mild-mannered and friendly," she added.
So how did such a man end up unconscious on the floor of a New Ross pub - and dead two days later? That was the question the people of the town hoped would be answered when the trial of nine people charged in connection with the fracas preceding Magnus's death began in Wexford Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday, February 8th.
In a sad twist to the story of the final days of Magnus Forsmark's life, not one family member attended any part of the trial. One member of the investigating team told Judge Patrick McCartan that contact with some family members had been made but none was inclined to travel to Ireland.
The garda went on to say that it appeared Magnus's family had "drifted apart".
Throughout the 18-day trial the shock among the people of New Ross about what happened in the pub that night turned to anger as many people wanted to see justice done.
As facts emerged in the case it was revealed that Magnus "had played little or no part in the row that took place", to quote Judge McCartan. Of the nine people who stood accused, three were found guilty of violent disorder: Anthony O'Leary, of Bosheen Estate; Raymond Kelly, of Brandon Park and Ian Bolger, of Nunnery Lane.
A fourth defendant, Jason Murphy, of Bosheen, had pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of affray on the first day of the trial.
Judge McCartan said the offences were serious "because the end result of what occurred led to the death of a young man who had travelled from afar to this country to make his way as best he could".
The defendants' relatives and friends were in court every day throughout the trial and, according to the mother of one of the accused, the strain of the trial was "unbearable".
One member of the Garda described the case - which involved a witness list containing 71 names and a book of evidence amounting to 600 pages - as the biggest incident of its kind to affect New Ross in his 25 years there.
Last Tuesday, Judge McCartan sentenced O'Leary, Kelly and Bolger to three years in prison for their involvement in the row, and sentenced Jason Murphy to 12 months.
All four were ordered to pay €2,500 to the Victims' Support Group and were bound to enter into a €1,000 bond to keep the peace and be of good behaviour for a period of three years, in the cases of O'Leary, Kelly and Bolger, and 12 months in the case of Jason Murphy.
However, he suspended the sentences on the grounds that none of the accused had been in trouble before and their actions that night were "totally out of character". Judge McCartan added that "everyone is deserving of a second chance".
The news was greeted in court with a spontaneous round of applause from the defendants' supporters. Referring to Magnus, Judge McCartan said: "something occurred to him that night which was either unseen or ignored by witnesses".
If someone somewhere knows what happened that night they are not telling. For Magnus Forsmark, there was no second chance.